Embedded or enclosed systems for housing electronic components, such as a computer chassis, that are designed to withstand high shock and vibration are well-known in the art. Exemplary of such prior-art enclosures include those environmental enclosures disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,309,315 and 5,570,270, issued on May 3, 1994 and Oct. 29, 1996, respectively, to Nadell et al., entitled SEVERE ENVIRONMENT ENCLOSURE WITH THERMAL HEAT SINK AND EMI PROTECTION, the teachings of which are expressly incorporated herein by reference. Additionally exemplary of such prior-art apparatus include those enclosures disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,381,314 issued on Jan. 10, 1995 to Rudy, Jr. et al., entitled HEAT DISSIPATING EMI/RFI PROTECTIVE FUNCTION BOX, the teachings of which are likewise incorporated herein by reference.
In this regard, such devices are typically designed to house computer systems for use in predominantly embedded applications in severe environments. With respect to the latter, it is well-recognized in the art that a severe environment is generally defined as one subject to large environmental extremes due to temperature, humidity, radiation, electromagnetic induction, shock and vibration. Additionally, an embedded application is generally accepted as meaning a specific function or functions, which are contained within a larger application, and requires no human intervention beyond supplying power to the computer. Exemplary of such embedded applications include systems and process controls, communications, navigations, and surveillance.
In order to properly function and perform such applications, it is critical that the computer and other electronic components housed within such enclosures be constructed, supported and enclosed in such a way as to be able to withstand such severe conditions. Typically, the primary focus of such prior-art enclosures is to provide a structurally sound enclosure for an array of individual circuit boards or daughter cards in a backplane assembly to which the circuit boards are electrically connectable and disconnectable, to thus define a card cage. Despite the best efforts that can be made with respect to properly arranging such circuit cards, however, an inherent problem in all such embedded systems arises from the use of wiring between circuit cards, which is necessary to interconnect such circuit cards for data transfer. Specifically, hard-wired connections are known to become disconnected when subjected to extremes in shock and vibration. The use of wire conductor for interconnecting circuit cards also typically generates undesirable electromagnetic interference (EMI) and radio frequency interference (RFI).
In addition to the undesirable effects and potentially unsound structural arrangement by which prior-art circuit cards are housed interconnected within an embedded system are the complications that arise from designing such systems. As it is well-known in the art, circuit cards can and oftentimes do operate at multiple voltages, which thus requires complex circuitry design in order to enable a plurality of circuit cards to be interconnected with one another. In this respect, to the extent fluctuating voltages are utilized in a given interconnected system, those circuit cards incapable of operating at such higher voltages become inoperative due to the incompatible voltage interface.
As such, there is a substantial need in the art for a system and method for operatively interconnecting a plurality of circuit cards with one another within an embedded system that can withstand severe environments to a greater degree than prior art system and methods. Likewise, there is a substantial need in the art for such systems and methods that can produce greater reliability, can be implemented utilizing existing technology, and allows for substantially more simplified circuitry design than prior art systems and methods.